Waking Up
by DarkPrincess128
Summary: It was only a matter of time before Ike's mental health decayed in some way. Soren had been expecting it the whole time. Ike had post-traumatic stress disorder. No slash.


**Disclaimer: I don't own Fire Emblem.**

**A/N: This is the first FE story I've written in a while, so sorry if anyone's OOC. Also sorry if there are any inaccuracies in here, but I did my research on the Internet. **

_One too many battles,_ Soren thinks bitterly. _One too many battles with one too many soldiers and one too many bad memories…_

Ike had always been too strong a person. It was unreal, how strong he was. Both mentally and physically, slowing down was never really in Ike's wide repertoire of personality traits. When his father died, he didn't even shed a tear (though he had wanted to). He had witnessed the death of his very own father and just held his head high for those around him – the company, his sister…Strength and Ike went together easily.

So it really wasn't surprising to Soren, who had been particularly close to him, that Ike had developed post-traumatic stress disorder. Everyone else was ignorant – not to mention how imperceptive they were. They were all shocked to find out the news about Ike; Soren sure wasn't. He knew – had known – that Ike was a bomb waiting to go off (regarding his sanity, that is). He didn't necessarily predict shell shock, but he knew Ike's mental health would deteriorate in some shape or form.

When Soren was alone, which was often, he thought about life. About people. About Ike, Titania, Mia, and the rest of the mercenaries he used to be surrounded by constantly. All strong people, and now, they were out somewhere on Tellius fighting a war with a new commander and their top healer possibly without someone as skilled in magic as he. When Ike was diagnosed, Soren and Mist quit to look after him. It was painful, but they had no real choice.

At the moment, Ike was in bed, probably being eluded by sleep. He had no idea where Mist was. They had only been home for three weeks, but it felt much longer. Ike woke up nightly with nightmares, and many times would push away Soren and/or Mist when they were trying to help. He distanced himself often. Everything the doctor said would happen really did happen.

The doctor wasn't sure, however, just how long it would last. With a life like Ike's, it could last years. They said the symptoms could never be fully gone and that scared the hell out of Soren. It's not that the thought of looking after Ike for so long frightened him – he owed a lot to Ike and was almost obligated to do so (plus, he would long outlive Ike, so it wasn't that much of a chore in that regard, either). No, he wasn't frightened for himself, but for Ike. It was basically a given that he would never battle again, just in case. But that was just the problem – what would become of him? What would he do? What could a broken soldier accomplish with this disorder?

_Those, _Soren realized, eyebrows furrowing, _are the questions they – the doctors – can't answer._

If his facial muscles allowed him to do so, he would have smirked. One of the many other unsatisfactory things they had said was that there were so many traumatic events in Ike's life that none could really be pinpointed as the final blow to his sanity. Just makes the nightmares worse, Soren had muttered.

Ike had woken from one of those nightmares as Soren had finished his reminiscence, screaming. As usual, Soren ran in to calm him. One too many nights had trained him well.

He was still screaming when Soren reached him. For once, he actually leaned into Soren's somewhat-comforting embrace. Soren was initially surprised, but quickly pushed the shock away.

"Nightmare…" Ike breathed.

Understatement and the most overused word in Ike's vocabulary at the moment, Soren mused bitterly. "Yes, only a nightmare. You're safe here. You're okay now. No one's going to hurt you."

Ike was still panting. "I'm not safe anywhere."

Soren straightened his sheets out, handing Ike the glass of water he had next to his bed, prepared for his waking up. "No, you're safe whenever you have Mist or me with you."

He gulped the water down easily. "Not from the memories."

Soren grimaced. "I can't argue with that. With time, they'll go away. You'll heal."

Ike didn't say anything and they both sat on Ike's bed for what seemed like an eternity.

"Soren?" Ike finally spoke.

"Yes?"

"…I'll sleep now. Thank you."

"You're welcome," he said, and left the room. He wondered exactly when his relationship with Ike had gotten so cold.

When he went to bed, Soren fell asleep dreamless.

**A/N: Reviews are love. :)**


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